Mom Sues Nacogdoches Daycare After 3-Year-Old Found on Busy Highway Loop 224 by Good Samaritans

Lawyers at The Button Law Firm seek to get justice for negligence and endangering toddler's life 

NACOGDOCHES, Texas, Feb. 19, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- In a new lawsuit filed against Stepping Stones Early Learning Center, Nacogdoches mother Lindsay Tompkins claims caregivers neglected her 3-year-old daughter, allowing her to exit the daycare unnoticed, walk over half a mile, and end up in the middle of Highway Loop 224 in May 2023. The complaint states a group of good Samaritans stopped traffic on the high-speed highway and rescued the toddler, who was standing between the two lanes holding a Shrek doll. The daycare allegedly did not realize the child was missing until two workers returning from their lunch break passed the commotion, recognized the toddler, and drove her back to the daycare center.

Immediately following the incident, Stepping Stones Early Learning Center workers broke Texas daycare laws when they did not notify law enforcement or Tompkins about what happened, according to the suit. The complaint states workers contacted Tompkins later in the afternoon for an "urgent meeting" when the toddler was crying and asking for her mother. Workers at the center attempted to cover up the incident by telling Tompkins her daughter left the facility during naptime and was found at the edge of the daycare's property. However, reports from multiple witnesses, including the good Samaritans who rescued the girl, exposed the daycare center's lie, according to the complaint.

"I lived my worst nightmare when I learned my daughter could have been killed and no one at Stepping Stones Early Learning Center even noticed she was gone," says Tompkins. "Almost a year later, I still cannot wrap my head around the pure negligence of Stepping Stones Early Learning Center and its caregivers."

An investigation into the incident conducted by the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services found Stepping Stones Early Learning Center had two main doors that were not locked and did not have an alarm system to monitor the doors' opening, according to the suit. In addition, the complaint states the childcare center was cited for neglectful supervision as well as failing to prevent the incident. A second report from the state agency stated the daycare center voluntarily closed its doors in June 2023.

"What happened to this toddler is one of the most shocking cases of daycare negligence we have seen," says daycare injury attorney Russell Button of The Button Law Firm, who represents Tompkins. "Stepping Stones Early Learning Center failed a 3-year-old and her mom. The whole point of childcare is to have someone closely watch your child, and hard-working parents like Ms. Tompkins expect their toddlers to be supervised and protected from any harm."

The case is Lindsay Tompkins, Individually and as next friend of S.T., a minor child, vs. Stepping Stones Early Learning Center, LLC and Tina Grimes, Cause No. C2439237 in the District Court of Nacogdoches County, Texas. A copy of the complaint can be accessed here.

About The Button Law Firm
The Button Law Firm (buttonlawfirm.com) is a Texas-based personal injury law firm that advocates for children and their families in meaningful litigation to make local communities safer. The firm focuses on daycare and child-related injuries such as abuse and neglect cases, bottle warmer burns, traumatic brain injuries, and catastrophic injuries. With attorneys in Dallas, Houston, and Midland, The Button Law Firm helps families move forward across the Lone Star State.

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SOURCE The Button Law Firm